BALTIMORE -- Via e-mail, the Baltimore Orioles contacted Hideki Matsui on Friday to express their interest in the Japanese slugger.

The club also sent Matsui an overnight package with brochures and other information about the city of Baltimore, the team and its home stadium.

Matsui has sent letters to all 30 major league teams. The Yankees are widely considered to be the heavy favorite to land him.

"I read in the paper that (the Yankees' officials) are coming," Matsui told reporters Friday. "As of now, I have no plans to meet with them."

After arriving in Japan, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said he has no plans to meet with Matsui either. However, Cashman did indicate he intends to do so at some point.

"That issue will come another day," Cashman told the Newark Star-Ledger. "I have no plans to talk to him at this point in time. The only reason I am here is to finalize the working agreement with the (Yomiuri) Giants."

However, Cashman did say he could change his plans if something developed while he is here to seal the deal with Japan's biggest club. He also could return to specifically talk to Matsui. Cashman is scheduled to leave Japan in three or four days.

"I don't rule out coming back if anything else develops while we're here," he told the newspaper.

Matsui hit 50 home runs last season for the Yomiuri Giants of the Japanese Central League. The Orioles struggled to score runs last season, and Matsui's left-handed swing would likely be a good fit for the short porch at Camden Yards.

"We have thorough information on (Matsui), inside and out, regarding this young man as a player and a person," Orioles vice president for baseball operations Syd Thrift told The Baltimore Sun. "He's a good hitter. He can hit for power. He's a good outfielder. He's a good baseball player. He could be a top producer here at Camden Yards because of the configurations."

Thrift, who sent the e-mail, and Orioles owner Peter Angelos would not comment on whether the Orioles were planning on making Matsui an offer.

According to The Sun, the Orioles have expressed interest in four other top free-agent hitters: Jim Thome, Ivan Rodriguez, Cliff Floyd and Edgardo Alfonzo.